Disarm
by GwendolynTalbot
Summary: Season 11. An attack on the precinct leaves the detectives unarmed and trapped in a volatile situation - Olivia and Elliot are thrust into danger. EO as always, because they are awesome :-) "They remained motionless, the room silent and still except for their breath. Olivia felt as though the air was almost thick around them - filled with unspoken feelings, words never voiced..."
1. Chapter 1

**I have set this loosely in season 11 - it doesn't link to any episodes. EO of course :-) rated T, some occasional** **language and violence, but It should be safe as a T. I have also just started Hold which is M rated.**

 **PROLOGUE**

 **SVU SQUAD ROOM  
11:30PM FRIDAY **

Cragen came out of his office, turning off the light before closing the door and glancing across toward Olivia and Elliot's desks.

" _Go home_ , the paperwork can wait, this day has given us all headaches we didn't need."

Olivia stretched her arms above her head and stifled a yawn, "Just wanna put this behind us and think about something else tomorrow."

"Well, if you're too tired to concentrate you'll only be re writing it all, so pack up and head home. _Sleep_ ," he said as he made his way toward the elevator.

"You heard the man, let's call it a night Liv, i'll text Fin, he can wake Munch up, cap will be starting to think we all live here," Elliot said, "need a ride?"

"Thanks," Olivia said as she stood, "I do feel pretty exhausted - honestly I've been fighting the urge to fall asleep at my desk."

"Yeah, I know what you mean - can't remember the last time I felt this tired," Elliot said.

Elliot grabbed his phone and sent a quick text message to Fin before placing it back into his pocket, and putting on his jacket.

He pressed the button on on the elevator, realising that they had a moment to wait for it to come back up, and cast a glance at Olivia.

Olivia felt his eyes resting on her and turned to look at him.

"Any plans this weekend?...assuming no call outs that is," she said.

Elliot drew his eyes away from hers, and fixed his gaze on the elevator, "No. Now it's summer, Kathy thought this might be the ideal time to... take the kids to stay with her parents - no school to worry about…"

"El...you mean for a vacation, or…?" Olivia asked tentatively.

" _Not quite_ …" Elliot said uncomfortably.

Olivia sighed, turning to face him, "I'm sorry El, that's not fair on any of you, it's not as if they live nearby. When did she leave?"

"Three weeks ago," he said as he hit the elevator button again in annoyance.

Olivia sighed, wishing Elliot had felt able to talk to her, but not wanting to voice that feeling right now.

"Want to talk about it?" she asked.

"No, not really...you wanna get a drink though? Feels like too long since we've done that," Elliot said.

"Let's do that then," smiled Olivia.

"We'll have to take the stairs..what's wrong with the elevator tonight?" Elliot said as he impatiently hit the button again.

Olivia reached in her pocket and took out her phone, "I just need to reply to this…" she said, as she leaned against the elevator door, resting her head as she forgot the cell phone in her hand and closed her eyes.

Elliot froze and turned around with a look of confusion and caution, "Liv...you ok?"

Olivia blinked, opening her eyes, and tried to clear the fog in her mind. Slipping her phone into her back pocket, she looked at him, the edge of concern in his voice quite clear.

"What is it?" she asked, frowning.

"You don't look too good Liv…" said Elliot, as he reached forward, intending to place his hand on her forehead, wondering if she was burning up. His coordination took a step sideways however, and he missed her completely, his hand landing heavily on the elevator door next to her.

Olivia felt her eyes closing again, and slumped slightly realising with alarm that her muscles would not cooperate -she could not move from the spot she was attempting to stand in.

"Liv...something's wrong.." Elliot said, as his head swam.

Fin made his way up the stairs, cursing at the timing of the elevator to go out of service right when he had gone out to grab some food. On the first floor he slowed his step, tensing. The building was quiet at that time of night, but there were a handful of people scattered throughout the building in various departments.

Coming to a complete halt one floor below the squad room, he concentrated; the sound of muffled voices soon drawing his attention. Something instinctively felt wrong - unable to make out the words, the tone of the voices put him on guard straight away. Placing his bag of take out on the stair, and drawing his weapon, he made his way up the remaining stairs and paused at the door.

The voices were louder now, and agitated - his squad room was one floor higher, but his instincts told him to check on the situation. Raised voices were not uncommon - they were par for the course really given the things they dealt with every day, but his gut told him something was wrong.

Inching the door slightly open he tensed - through his limited field of vision at the crack in the door, he scanned the room as best as he could.

Fin immediately eased the door closed as he stepped back, pulling out his phone and sending out a silent alert as he quickly and quietly continued past the door and up the last flight of stairs into the SVU squad room.

Moving quickly through the doors he was relieved to see Olivia and Elliot but a flash of concern struck him when he noticed that Elliot had his arm around her waist, trying to walk her toward the door. He crossed the room to ask them what had happened and update them on what was happening downstairs when Munch drew their attention.

He had stopped halfway down the stairs leading from the crib, and was leaning against the wall, staring into the squad room, confused momentarily before his eyes flashed with a sudden panic when he spotted Olivia and Elliot and realisation dawned on him.

"Get out of here!" he shouted, as he moved down the remaining steps, bracing himself against the wall, watching in alarm as Olivia dropped to the floor.

 **CHAPTER 1**

 **ONE HOUR LATER**

Elliot opened his eyes and instantly squeezed them shut against the pain in his head. Shifting uncomfortably he tried to lift his head and placed his hands on the floor pushing himself up. As soon as he tried to sit up a wave of nausea and dizziness hit him hard and he pushed onto his hands and knees taking a steadying breath before trying to clear his head.

Staring at the ground underneath him, he tried to focus and figure out what the hell had happened and where he was. Raising his head he was suddenly struck with a feeling of dread as his eyes scanned the room and instantly fell upon the other people lying unconscious on the ground.

Using all his strength to get to his feet, he quickly took in the scene; Olivia and Munch were unmoving and he assumed, unconscious.

Sensing movement to the left he spun around, a little too quickly and gripped his desk for support... _his desk_ ; they were in the squad room.

"What the fuck happened?" said Fin as he pulled himself up using his desk to steady himself.

Elliot shook his head, trying to rid himself of the fog of confusion.

"I don't know...we were..." Elliot began, but couldn't remove his focus from Olivia's unconscious form. He stumbled over to her, dropping to his knees beside her as he took her wrist in his hand and checked her pulse.

"She ok?" Fin said as he made his way over to Munch and did the same.

"Yeah, her pulse is steady - Munch?" Elliot asked.

"Same here. What the hell were we hit with?" Fin asked.

"I can't remember anything after...you broke the window _._.." Elliot said

" _Gas. The room was filling with gas_..." Fin said.

Elliot slipped off his jacket and balled it up, carefully lifting Olivia's head and placing it underneath before gently resting her head back down again.

He gave a sigh as he sat on the floor next to her and let his eyes take in the squad room.

The room was in a state of disarray; chairs turned over, papers and photographs scattered across the floor and shattered glass from a broken window. The holding cell, which had housed two suspects, was disturbingly unoccupied.

Fin made his way to his desk and picked up his phone, as Elliot reached into his pocket for his cellphone.

"Line's dead," Fin said.

"My cell's gone, what about yours?" Elliot asked.

Fin checked his pocket and shook his head before noticing a sudden change in Elliot's expression.

"What is it?" Fin asked warily.

Elliot looked at Fin, " _I don't have my gun either_..."

Fin moved straight to Munch and checked his pockets for his cellphone, while Elliot did the same to Olivia.

"His are gone too," Fin said, frustrated.

Elliot hesitated as his hands hovered over Olivia before checking the pockets of her jacket. Fin watched him impatiently as he tensed.

"Has she got her phone or not?" Fin asked, as he grew more impatient by the minute.

" _Wait.._ I remember - we were going home...I asked her if she needed a lift...we were walking to the elevator..her phone buzzed, she took it out, sent a text and put it in her back pocket," Elliot said, trying to shake the off the fog clouding his memory.

" _Did you check her pocket_?" Fin said, growing frustrated.

Elliot knelt next to Olivia and hesitated, debating how to approach the situation, given that he didn't know which pocket she had put it in. He could almost feel Fin's stare as he stalled and considered whether it was bordering on inappropriate to search her for her cellphone.

"Stabler, just check!"

Elliot rolled her onto her side carefully, one hand steadying her hip as he slid a hand into the back pocket of her pants, trying very hard not to press his fingers against her, and not think about the fact that he was unavoidably touching her ass as his fingers closed around her cellphone and as he pulled it out.

He let out the breath he didn't realise he had been holding and hoped that Fin had not picked up on his hesitation, as he positioned her more comfortably on her side.

They had long established unspoken boundaries - but lately it just seemed that it was becoming harder and harder. He was unintentionally distancing himself further from her physically and emotionally and he knew that it was impacting their relationship. He wasn't trying to push her away, but he didn't know how else to handle it; his feelings, his ever growing desire for her were becoming harder and harder to ignore.

She had been so supportive to him, to his family; she told him to talk to his wife when his marriage was falling apart, she had been a good friend to him in every way. She supported him far more than he felt he deserved; she was everything a best friend could be - _he couldn't ruin that_.

He was just too afraid of her discovering his feelings - he couldn't bear the loss if she didn't feel the same. He had been separated twice now - this time just felt more final, but that didn't make it easier, didnt make it feel ok to hold these feelings for Olivia. Kathy was stiĺl his wife after all, but while he cared about her, felt obligated to her and respected her, he had given up trying to fix things. Their marriage had broken years ago - they had simply attempted to repair their broken bond repeatedly, neither quite going that final step in admitting that they needed to do something about it.

His feelings for Olivia were far more obvious to him now - now that he didn't feel this unending sense of duty and responsibility to his wife. That was not the only barrier however - he didn't see how it could not impact their friendship and their partnership if he broached the subject of his feelings; her part in his life, _he valued it more than he could ever tell her._

Elliot looked at Olivia's phone and typed in her unlock code.

"It's on, signal and battery ok."

They wasted no more time trying to work out what had happened. Elliot began to make a call but just as he began speaking he heard Olivia groan and immediately passed the phone to Fin.

He moved over to her quickly and crouched down, his hand resting against her shoulder in concern as Fin started talking on the phone, relaying the details of their situation.

"Liv," he said, as he put an arm around her back and lifted her into a sitting position, "Liv, _we have a situation here_ , you ok?"

Olivia's head swam, and she stared in confusion at the chaotic scene before her in the squad room.

"Olivia - we were knocked out, the phones are dead, come on, i'm gonna help you up," he said, as he pulled her slowly to her feet and moved her over to a nearby chair, his hand remaining lightly on her arm as he looked at her, waiting for her to come around more fully.

Elliot fought the urge to reach up and run his fingers through her hair - it was almost overwhelming; this need to touch her. It had been consuming him recently, and he had been trying his damndest to make sure he didn't act on it and risk losing the best friend he had ever had, but he was beginning to wonder how much longer he could keep ignoring his feelings.

Olivia blinked and tried to clear her blurred vision as she gradually regained her senses, her hand moving to her throat as Elliot moved his hand to the shoulder, resting it lightly there.

"Ok," she said slowly, as she leant back in the chair, her eyes closing, "my throat is burning - what were we knocked out with?"

"Some kinda gas," Fin said, as he ended the call.

"Look, there's some serious shit going down here," Fin continued, "The building's sealed - they don't know if the perps got out or not, but they busted those two creeps from our cage."

"What else did they say Fin?" Olivia asked.

"Sixteen people were evacuated, they need us to confirm that the perps got out - building's sealed until we do. That's all they have right now, but they need us calling in every thirty minutes," Fin said.

"They know what we were knocked out with?" asked Elliot, as he moved over to Munch, who was now beginning to move, and put his hands under his arms, shifting him until his back was against a wall, hoping that the change in position would rouse him.

Munch murmured and began to open his eyes, "What…" he began.

"Go slow old man, you've been knocked out by sleeping gas," Fin said.

Munch opened his eyes slowly, wincing at the pain in his throat, "And when did the hurricane hit the squad room? " he asked, as he glanced around the room taking in the aftermath.

"Buildings sealed, and we need to figure out if anyone else is in here with us, Liv's phone is the only line outta here, least we got that," Fin said.

"Ok….we need a game plan here," Elliot said, "we need to know who we're dealing with here - they're armed, they have our weapons, and we don't even know if they are in here."

"Not liking those odds, we need to arm up," Fin added.

Munch rested his head against the wall and battled to focus, "They are organised enough to orchestrate something like this - and have access to a large volume of an oneirogenic expected to get what they came for and be out of here before we woke up nursing hangovers from hell, but now they're trapped in here."

Munch took a breath, fighting a wave of dizziness, "We were lucky, this type of gas used at a high volume could be lethal. The military ran a psychochemical warfare program back in the 70s, imagine how far they would have perfected it by now."

Munch felt the eyes of the other three detectives on him, and looked up, shrugging, "Hey, not saying this is a military attack, just that whoever did this must have some kind of link to get access to this sort of incapacitating agent."

Olivia stood up, taking a breath and remaining still for a moment, ensuring her dizziness had subsided enough that her balance would not be affected.

"Cragen's office - he keeps his backup there - they might not have got that. One weapon between four of us is hardly ideal, but it's something. Anyone know the code for the lock box?" Olivia said.

Twenty minutes later, and the effects of the gas was wearing off enough that each of them had regained their senses enough to focus and discuss a game plan. They had been able to talk with Cragen on the phone, who they were relieved to know was on the other side of the sealed building, and they soon had his backup weapon. It only went a small way to redressing the balance however, as one gun between all four detectives was of little comfort.

Olivia walked more steadily over to Munch, who was now seated at his desk.

"If you're throat feels anything like mine, you'll need this," Olivia said, as she handed him a cup of water before taking a seat on the edge of his desk.

"Thanks Liv, haven't woken up feeling this ill for a long time," he said with a slight laugh, "given our side effects though, this does point to an oneirogenic agent, which should pass quickly enough, but could so easily have been fatal. There _are_ far more sinister agents they could have used, believe me. We have got off very lightly - so they weren't planning on killing us all...if they came for those two in the lockup, then why the chaos in here? What else were they looking for?"

"Maybe nothing - those two were pretty pissed - they could have done this damage in two minutes, they had time once we were all out," Fin said.

"This sort of attack is used more often than most people realise. There have been an increasing number of cases in Europe where people have been anesthetized with gas and robbed while unconscious. Those were all smaller enclosed spaces though - trailers usually, where it takes effect fast. This is a much bigger more open area, they must have pumped it in through the vents - and a lot of it," Munch said.

"So they pumped gas through the vents, not easy busting two perps out, but isn't this overkill?" Elliot asked.

Olivia frowned, "Our people would have cut the phone and lifts when they sealed the building - we need to find out if we're alone in here, it's lockdown until we do" she said, ignoring the slight headache and sore throat that were beginning to fade somewhat.

"Well, they planned to get in and out, if their plan has gone wrong and they're trapped in here - we need to locate them and get control of this," Munch said.

Outside the building, Cragen was worried, knowing there was nothing he could do to get his team out. The nearby streets were cordoned off, and outside of the immediate area around the precinct, a sea of SWAT and squad cars had amassed. Nearby, EMT's were still checking over the officers who had been evacuated, but there had been no fatalities, which was at least some comfort to Cragen. He found it hard to share in the almost enthusiastic attitude of the hostage negotiator, who saw the advantage in having detectives inside the building who could covertly update them on the situation.

Looking up at the broken window on the floor where the detectives were currently trying to form a plan, he felt gravely concerned. They needed to establish contact with the perpetrators at their end, and hope that his people did not become hostages.

Once they had discussed how best to approach the situation with their ability to communicate significantly reduced, they split up; Munch and Fin taking the stairs going to the upper floors, and Olivia and Elliot the lower floors. They needed to canvas for other people who might be injured as well as confirm if the perps were still in the building. With no radios and only one cell phone and one gun, they had eventually reached the decision that one team would take the phone and the other the gun, which they would keep concealed so that they would appear unarmed and less of a threat to the intruders.

Olivia glanced fleetingly at Elliot as they walked silently through the doors and into the floor below, where Fin had spotted the intruders. Pausing at first to listen, they could hear no sign of any occupants and relaxed slightly, not expecting that the people they were looking for would be there.

Briefly splitting up, they each walked through the rooms, and quickly returned to the door by the staircase.

"It makes sense that would have gone to the ground floor," Olivia said.

"They could have gone up - if they thought about trying to cross to another roof to get down that way," Elliot said.

"Only one way to know then," Olivia said.

Olivia made a move to push open the door and was surprised when his hand instantly covered hers. She paused, not using any pressure to push the door open; the feel of Elliot's hand over hers quite unexpected. She wondered why she wasn't moving - he had simply made the same motion that she had at the same time - they both went for the door...yet she found herself unable to move. Pushing the door open, putting that momentum in action, would break the moment - _the feel of their hands touching_.

Suddenly aware of him taking a step closer to her, his body behind her, but not touching, she admonished herself; what on earth would he be thinking if she just continued to stand there and didn't push the door open? Yet he had stepped closer toward her and _he_ was not pushing the door open either. They both hesitated, both stalled; both gave themselves into the feel of the others warmth for a fleeting moment.

Swallowing, she took a breath and turned her head slightly at the feel of his hand squeezing gently over hers. Her mind began to spin - it was only seconds in reality, just seconds of his hand over hers, yet time seemed to stand still - she felt locked in that moment, the warmth of his hand on hers, his closeness, _his touch_.

She heard him exhale as he pressed against her hand, pushing the door open before dropping his hand away. She walked through the door and turned to face him briefly, his eyes met hers, and a warmth - _an affection_ , passed between them, which gave Olivia a small smile. She could honestly get quite lost in a moment like that if she ever had the _right_ moment - or the boldness to make a move and take a risk.

Moving quickly down the stairs, they focused, and approached the door to the ground floor - preparing to discover what might be behind the doors. Pausing, they were aware of the silence at the other side of the door, and feeling confident Elliot pushed the door open cautiously, and walked through. Olivia followed him inside, and glanced around.

The room had obviously been occupied recently - desks were pushed to the side and their eyes drew to a smear of blood on the floor in front of them. Exchanging a cautious glance, they walked side by side, both aware of the very light touch of the other, as their hands briefly brushed, the feather light contact not unnoticed by either of them.

They moved forwards into the silence of the room, beginning to feel satisfied that the floor was empty, when their confidence was suddenly shook. Olivia jumped slightly when all at once the lights went out, enveloping them in darkness.

 **I am assuming that their backup weapons were taken too, but that Cragen would not have taken a backup home with him. If that's the case there must be somewhere secure that he would keep it. I also wasn't sure exactly which floor the squad room was on - so took an educated guess. (has this ever been established? I watched an ep where you saw the inside of the elevator and there were ten numbered floors but none of the buttons were illuminated when the doors opened.)**

Next chapter coming very soon - Elliot gets a little bolder about his feelings, but they soon run into danger.


	2. Chapter 2

**I always forget the disclaimer - I don't own anything from the Law and Order universe.**

They both remained still, listening intently to their surroundings; no voices were heard in reaction to the sudden blackout, but they were more cautious than to assume that meant they were alone.

Elliot couldn't see her, but he knew how close he was standing to her and took a step nearer despite their proximity, his hand instinctively slipping into hers.

Olivia tightened her hand around his, her heart thudding heavily at the sudden unexpected physical contact more than the loss of lighting. Her mind raced as she processed his action - and she quickly found a justification; it was a sensible way to stay together in the dark. The little light coming in from the street lamps was not enough to help them, and his action made sense to her in that respect.

The warmth of her hand in his felt perfect to Elliot. He exhaled, stepping even closer, aware of the diminishing space between them, aware that her body was so close to his that he could feel her breath against his skin. He wanted to take his other hand and reach up to her face, pull her towards him and kiss her, but he quickly admonished himself for his moment of insanity - Olivia would push him away and when they looked at each other again, once the shroud of darkness had been lifted, he was certain that he would see the distance forming quickly in her eyes.

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she looked at him; unable to see his expression clearly, but able to see his hand in hers. Her eyes were drawn to their hands - she felt a pang of guilt for even thinking about how right it felt; how natural it was to be holding his hand. She wanted to support him - he was separated, again, and he needed a friend, yet she stood by his side, his hand in hers, enjoying the closeness of the moment. Their action felt right, but her ease of acceptance of it felt wrong.

" _Liv_ ," he whispered, his voice closer than she expected, sending a small shiver rippling through her, "the backup lighting should kick on in a minute."

They remained motionless, the room silent and still except for their quickening breath. Olivia felt as though the air was almost thick around them - filled with unspoken feelings, words never voiced, hopes and regrets constantly buried.

She swallowed, and whispered, " _Elliot_ …"

Her words hung in the air, her sentence unfinished, as the room was suddenly lit by the dimmer backup lighting. She almost took a step backwards when she realised how close he was actually standing to her. She looked right into his eyes as he gently squeezed her hand, and time seemed to move even more slowly as he raised his other hand close to her face.

Elliot didn't allow himself to process his actions, to think, or even to stop - his eyes locked with hers as he brought his hand toward her cheek, his fingers barely touching her. He wondered on some level why she hadn't stepped back, let go of his hand, asked him what the hell he was doing, _but she hadn't_ and so he ran his fingertips lightly across her cheek watching her reaction carefully.

His eyes drifted to her lips, he knew she could see that, but he was too busy fighting the urge to kiss her to analyse her reaction. He took comfort in the fact that she was still standing close to him, her hand in his, not moving away.

Olivia felt her breathing quicken and her heart racing with the anticipation of the moment, as Elliot suddenly leaned forward, _much closer to her_. She wanted nothing more than to slip her hand behind his neck and pull him toward her, but he paused, and wasn't moving any further; and she would never initiate such an intimate act between them.

He moved his eyes from her lips and met hers, seeing a warmth within her, but a question too - he softened his gaze and met her eyes, smiling at her, wanting nothing more than to kiss her.

Olivia gave a small smile and looked down, coming to her senses as she considered where they were and what they were doing. Sensing the change in her response, he stepped back, giving her more space as he let go of her hand.

"We should...finish checking this floor out," Olivia whispered, as she returned her gaze to meet his.

"Yeah," he said, "Liv.. _listen_ , I..." he began.

Olivia glanced at him, her expression neutral as he wondered how she was feeling, how she had processed his touch. He knew he hadn't totally crossed a line, but she had broken the contact, she had been the one to step away and her stepping away from him was the one thing that scared him. He knew he needed to give her space but he had to know how she was feeling.

"El...we should check the rest of this floor," she said.

Elliot sighed and silently cursed at himself, her indifference was only making it harder - he didn't believe for a second she felt indifferent to his touch - she was either pissed at him for crossing a line, or she welcomed it - he wouldn't dare let himself think her reaction would be the latter, so as they continued walking from room to room, until they had almost reached the end of the corridor, Elliot could take the silence no longer.

"Liv, sorry if I...well _you know_ ," he said, realising as he spoke the words, that he had made a terrible attempt at addressing the issue.

Olivia turned to him, an annoying pang of anxiety rising within her.

"No, I don't know Elliot," she said, as she stepped closer, "what are you sorry for?"

Elliot sighed, " _Liv_.." he began.

Olivia sighed in frustration - he had initiated the situation, yet he was unwilling to talk about it and was now even apologising. She felt confused and frustrated - if there was any intention behind his actions then he would not have tried to apologise, unless he simply regretted it. Deciding she was done with the conversation, she turned away, walking to the end of the corridor and turning a corner - _where she froze_.

Elliot sighed as he watched her walk on ahead of him and round the corner, he was annoyed with himself for not just talking to her, but he was doubting his own actions. He had closed off so much, not wanting to risk getting too close to her and feeling his restraint slip, and in the process had distanced himself. In one moment however, he had done the opposite and almost kissed her - it would have been so easy to just close that gap, that short space between them and touch his lips against hers.

He knew his actions would be nothing short of confusing to her, and he promised himself that once this mess was sorted out, they would go for that drink, and they would talk. Even if he didn't begin to come close to addressing the unspoken feelings he held for her, at least he could clear the air - apologise for pushing her away in the past few weeks - get his best friend back again.

He followed her around the corner and abruptly stopped, his heart dropping as his eyes fell upon Olivia who stood very still; the barrel of a gun pressing into her head.

The air seemed to leave him in one sudden swoop - Elliot felt his heart rate instantly speed up, as his eyes locked with Olivia's, and he swallowed, a cold nauseous feeling sweeping over him.

"Step away from her and we can talk about what you came here for," he said, his voice not betraying how scared he felt.

"Oh I don't think so," said the man holding the gun to Olivia's head, and gripping her shoulder tightly, "I knew someone was in here, or they would have moved in by now. _I'm_ in charge here."

Olivia closed her eyes momentarily and sighed in frustration and fear as she felt the gun pressing hard against the side of her head.

"Ok," Elliot said, raising his hands up to show that he was unarmed, "you're in charge, just tell us what you need. You wanna get out of here? Don't you?"

Elliot turned his head as he spotted movement by the doorway, but his heart dropped when he saw three other men, taking note that they were all armed, including the two who had previously been in their custody.

"Tell me you didn't find anyone else…" the man with the gun said.

"No, I think this is it…" said the man they both recognised as Graham Wright, who they had only earlier interrogated and locked up.

"Just the two detectives who brought us in here Jed," he said, with a smirk as he glanced at the other man who had been arrested along with him.

"Well that couldn't have worked out better then," laughed Jed, as he walked closer, standing in front of Elliot, staring hard at him.

"We don't have time to play games, use their cuffs to secure them so they don't give us any surprises," the gunman said, as he moved the gun away from Olivia's head and lowered it before gripping her shoulders, and turning her to face him.

"You're not gonna give me any trouble now sweetheart, _are you_?" he said, as he leaned in, his face close to hers.

Olivia was very aware of the gun held more loosely now in his hand as it pressed painfully into her while he gripped her. She knew that making a move in any way would be a bad idea with four armed assailants, but once they were cuffed they would be significantly more disadvantaged. The fourth man hung back, standing by the door - Olivia hoped that he remained there so that Munch and Fin would be aware of what was going on and not just blindly walk into the scene.

" _No trouble_ ," Olivia whispered, masking her relief when he stepped back, releasing her shoulders.

"I'm Curtis, and you are going to pay attention and do what I tell you, or _you are not going to live_ ," he said casually, before grabbing the back of Olivia's neck tightly, and using his other hand to jam the gun up underneath her chin, pushing her head roughly back, "GOT IT?"

" _Got it._..we're not going to try anything, ok?" Olivia whispered, letting out a breath when he pulled the gun away from her and stepped back, as he looked from Olivia to Elliot.

"Take your cuffs and cuff his hands behind his back - and do it properly," he said, staring hard at Olivia.

Olivia hesitated, then reached for her cuffs as he raised his gun, pointing it squarely at Elliot.

"Ok," she said, raising her hands, holding her cuffs out clearly, "let's just stay calm, i'm doing it…"

Their eyes all fell on Olivia as she walked around Elliot, standing behind him.

Elliot moved his hands back, and she took hold of his wrists briefly, before slipping her hands down into his; Olivia felt a surge of reassurance by the way he subtly took her hands into his and squeezed for a fleeting moment.

"You were much quicker when you cuffed me earlier _bitch_ ," said Jed as he stepped closer, gesturing toward her with his gun, "get a move on."

Olivia sighed and tightened the cuffs around his wrists as loosely as she thought she could get away with, but even so, she knew with disquiet, that he would not be able to get free.

"We need these two outta the way, keeping them around isn't gonna help," Graham said as Curtis grabbed Elliot's cuffs and moved over to Olivia.

"You _need us_ \- we know what their next move is," Elliot said as he tilted his head toward the window, "you wanna get out of here - we want this over, you need our help."

"True...but I don't need both of you for that...and let's face it, _she's nicer to look at_ ," laughed Graham, as he spun round, firing a warning shot in Elliot's direction.

Elliot jumped back, instinctively trying to move his hands, and stilled, his eyes locking with Olivia's. She hadn't appeared afraid when she was being held by gunpoint at point blank range, but the shot fired in his direction had caused a shift; he could tell she was on edge now, even if she masked it well.

Graham smirked and walked quickly over to Elliot, his gun held loosely at his side. Olivia kept a careful watch on the gun, counting the moments until Curtis forgot this distraction and continued with the task of cuffing her too.

In a split, the scene unfolding before Olivia seemed to move in slow motion as Graham raised his gun, pointing at Elliot, his distance too close, his aim too true to miss as his finger squeezed the trigger.

Olivia reacted as soon as she saw him move, dropping to the ground where she pulled the gun out of the holster concealed on her leg. She aimed squarely at Graham, two shots landing straight in his chest, knocking him down, his body falling lifeless to the ground.

Elliot kicked the gun out of the way towards Olivia as it dropped to the floor from Graham's lifeless grip.

In the moment that followed, Elliot noticed that Jed was getting too close to Olivia and lunged at him, unable to use his hands, he could only rely on his bodyweight to knock him down, forcing him to the ground.

Olivia stepped forward, kicking the gun behind her, not wanting to break her aim even for a moment as the man who had been guarding the door ran over, raising his gun, aiming at her. She fired again, this time her bullet landing in his shoulder.

Jed rolled over, punching Elliot in the side of his face, but he blinked away the pain, concentrating instead on his partner.

"OLIVIA, BEHIND YOU!" Elliot shouted.

Olivia stepped to the side just a fraction of a second too late as Curtis struck her across the back of her head with his gun.


	3. Chapter 3

Fin and Munch reacted immediately to the sound of gun shots, running down the stairs until the halfway point, pausing as Fin heard Olivia's cell phone ringing. He knew the situation would be very delicate now, but not knowing where Olivia and Elliot were, he didn't want anyone on the outside making any rash decisions and moving in, potentially putting them in harm's way.

'Tutuola,' he said as he answered the phone, 'no, _do not move in_ \- we don't know the locations of Detective Stabler and Detective Benson. If they're down there you could risk their lives moving in.'

"Damn it, we have to get down there," Fin said, as he ended the call.

" _Not unarmed_ \- they potentially have four guns at least, we won't be any use if we just become hostages," Munch reasoned.

"Ok, we already checked our squad room, so we bust open some lockers, see if anyone on _this floor_ has left anything we can use," Fin said.

"Let's do it," Munch said, "do they have a visual on the perps? Any idea how many?"

"No, looks like they only have us," Fin replied.

Walking through the doors into the floor below, they checked the room for anything suitable to use to open the lockers. Failing to find anything practical, they opted for fire extinguishers.

Munch removed his jacket, placing it on a chair as he loosened his tie.

"Way too hot in here - they've cranked the heat up," Fin said.

"Well that's to be expected, they're hoping to flush these people out - make them uncomfortable in every way they can. Dimmer lighting, turning the heat right up, limiting their movements by taking the elevators out of the equation - but if they're using these tactics then i'm guessing they haven't established contact yet," Munch said.

Moving to the bank of lockers which they quickly located, they both began using the weight of the fire extinguishers to break open the locks, and look through the contents inside of each locker, hoping that they could redress the balance and end the situation fast.

The concern they both held for Olivia and Elliot since hearing gunshots remained unspoken between them.

Curtis stood in front of Olivia and Elliot, staring down at them, his expression cold and full of anger. He crouched down in front of Olivia, who sat against the wall, her wrist cuffed to an exposed pipe. Elliot sat beside her, his wrist also secured to the pipe, his free hand almost close enough to hers to touch. He was growing more and more uncomfortable but his gaze kept drifting toward Olivia; a thin sheen of sweat glistened on her skin, and he could tell the heat was affecting her much more - especially with the small trail of blood which ran from the back of her head down to her neck.

The temperature in the room was becoming increasingly more uncomfortable - especially since they had been moved to an interrogation room; the heat increased faster in the smaller space. Olivia raised her free hand and swept her hair to one side, moving it away from her neck as best as she could, but avoiding the wound on the back of her head. She rested her head back against the wall, wincing slightly as she shifted position, turning her head until the pressure on her wound subsided.

She sighed, closing her eyes and hoping that it was merely the heat making her feel slightly dizzy and drowsy - a concussion would not be good, she had to focus and be effective, not physically weakened by a blow to her head.

She had said little since she had regained consciousness, partly due to the horrendous headache she now carried, but also because she was aware of how volatile their situation now was. She tried not to look directly at the body of the man she had killed - she was very aware of him lying on the ground, just outside the door in her peripheral vision, a gun she could not reach, lying on the ground nearby, not remotely reachable. Her feelings of shock at the unexpected turn were only muted by the very real danger they were in.

Curtis stared hard at Olivia, before rising and walking away toward Jed as they began to talk in hushed tones, but their body language gave away just how angry and desperate they had become.

Elliot turned to look at Olivia, watching her while she rested her head back against the wall, her eyes closed as she took a slow, deep breath.

" _Liv_ ," he whispered, "you did the right thing, I'd be dead now if you hadn't, we'd both be dead."

Olivia opened her eyes, turning to look at him, "you really think we're gonna come out of this alive now?" she whispered.

"Olivia," he paused, taking a deep breath before turning to face her. He let out his breath in a quick, uncontrolled burst, before leaning as far toward her as the handcuffs would allow him to as he reached for her hand. The hard steel dug into his wrist preventing him for completely reaching her, and he chose instead to hold out his hand, hoping that she would close the remaining distance.

Olivia looked at his outstretched hand, her mind too jumbled to take any time to process and analyse the gesture; she turned to face him, reaching out and slipping her hand into his.

He looked into her eyes as he tightened his grip, telling her in that one small gesture, that he was there for her, that he cared, and that he was thankful for her actions.

Jed moved over and stood in front of them, staring down hard, "Isn't this sweet," he said sarcastically.

Turning to look at Curtis he spoke with a hard, angry edge, "She fucking killed Graham, and Sam's not gonna make it if he doesn't get out of here soon," he said, gesturing towards the man who was sitting slumped at a desk outside of the interrogation room and clutching his shoulder, pressing a coat as hard as he could against the freely bleeding wound.

Curtis crouched down again in front of Olivia, staring at her with a mocking smile before turning his gun around and striking Elliot's wrist hard, with no warning. Elliot couldn't help letting out a groan of pain as the hard steel of the gun connected sharply with his wrist. He was forced to let go of Olivia's hand abruptly and pulled his injured wrist against his body, unable to support it with his other arm. Leaning back against the wall, his head pressing back against the wall, he closed his eyes, cursing quietly as he felt his wrist throbbing badly.

Curtis laughed and turned his attention to Olivia, one hand gripping her thigh tightly, warning her not to fight. Her eyes followed the gun he held in his other hand, as he pressed it against her leg, sliding it up the inside of her thigh, with a mocking grin. She tensed and tried hard not react as the barrel digging into into her flesh reached the top of her thigh, and skimmed between her legs before moving up and across her chest, as he retracted it briefly before jabbing the barrel hard against the centre of her chest.

Olivia winced and grunted, but composed herself quickly, despite the pain, returning her eyes to Curtis's; his stare cold and mocking - hers neutral and stoic.

Elliot felt absolutely sick - he was sure that Curtis was just trying to scare her, but that didn't mean he wasn't going to tire of playing that game any time soon and shoot her; he needed the attention away from Olivia _and fast._ He wanted to kick out at Curtis, knock him down and hope he got lucky if he dropped the gun - get that son of a bitch away from Olivia, but he reigned in his anger and acted with caution instead.

"You need to stop playing games, and talk to the people outside," Elliot said calmly, despite the anger building inside him, "they will move in otherwise, and none of you will make it out of here alive if that happens. _This will end in a blood bath_."

Elliot did his best to hide his relief as Curtis stood up and stepped away from Olivia. He didn't look at her, but could hear her let out a shuddering breath as Curtis rose and moved away.

"We didn't come this far to give ourselves up," Jed said angrily.

"They're not gonna do us any favours they just want us to hand ourselves over," Curtis said, "just fucking shoot them both - she's already put a bullet in Sam and killed Graham, _make her pay for it._ "

" _Look_ , what happened here..." Olivia began, as Elliot tensed, willing her to let him do the talking, considering how likely they were to retaliate against her now.

"What happened here got out of control fast…" she continued.

"What happened here?" Curtis said, giving a humorless laugh as he paced back and forth in the small room, "we should have got Graham and Jed out and been long gone, making our way out of state by the time anyone in this building woke up. _What happened here_ , is that this went very wrong, the building got evacuated and we're surrounded by cops outside - and then, _honey_ ," he said, as he turned his attention to Olivia, " _and then_...you pulled a gun on us and did a hell of a lot of damage."

"If Graham hadn't fired at me this wouldn't have happened," Elliot interjected, "he was a loose cannon, and Sam over there, he just reacted. You two though, you're smarter than that. You aren't gonna screw this up any more than it already has been...you wanna just get out of here…" Elliot said.

"So tell me how we can walk out of here - they will have every exit covered and they're not gonna play along with us, don't even suggest that to me - i'm not stupid," spat Jed.

"There's more than one way out of this building," Elliot said, his confidence rising as he watched Jed and Curtis considering his words, "we can help you get out of here undetected, and you can get Sam to a doctor - we can all walk out of here and this can end."

Curtis watched him, considering his words, "how long do we have until they move in? They have procedures right? They have timescales before they storm this place?"

"Call. Make contact and you can buy some time," Olivia said.

Curtis looked at her, his gaze bearing down on her, but she remained unfazed, hiding the nausea and waves of dizziness the blow to her head had caused.

Turning to Jed, Curtis waited for his instruction, unsure whether to trust them. Only when Jed nodded did he reach into his pocket and pull out his cellphone, before tossing it down onto Olivia's lap.

"Make a call, but you don't tell them anything about us - just negotiate, buy us time," Jed said.

Outside, the situation was becoming tense and Cragen was battling to protect his people. The hostage negotiator would leave it no longer if contact could not be established, and the risks of the SWAT team moving into a potential hostage situation with his squad was an outcome he was fighting to prevent.

Fin had confirmed that they had only retrieved one gun from their search of the lockers, but it helped redress the balance to some degree. Not having contact with the perpetrators was the issue threatening to escalate the situation however.

Cragen responded immediately when his cellphone rang, hoping that the unfamiliar number could be the contact they needed so badly.

He felt a slight relief at hearing Olivia's voice.

'Olivia - is anyone injured? We heard gunshots," Cragen asked.

'Elliot and I are ok…' Olivia said simply.

'Where are Munch and Fin?'

'Pretty sure noone else is in the building,' Olivia said.

'Ok, the perps with you right now?'

'Yes, they want to negotiate," Olivia said.

'Can you get one of them on the phone?'

Olivia held out the phone and looked at Curtis, "they want to talk to you,"

"No. You do the talking," Jed said as he casually waved his gun in Olivia's direction.

Olivia sighed and returned the phone to her ear, 'they will only talk through me,'

'Ok Olivia, what do they want?'

'To get out of here,'

'Ok, tell them I'll discuss that but only if they talk directly - they have two hours and then their chance of walking out of here diminishes if they don't communicate directly," Cragen said.

Olivia ended the call and looked up at Curtis - Elliot kept his eye warily on Jed who while in the background and not appearing to harbour anywhere near as much aggression as Curtis, gave off an air of almost disturbing silent hostility.

"You have two hours and then they want you to speak directly…" Olivia was interrupted by a cry from outside of the interrogation room.

Curtis went outside and within moment came back in half carrying Sam, whose appearance seemed to rattle even Jed. His whole arm and a significant part of his shirt were soaked in blood, as he staggered in, before dropping him to the floor next to Olivia and Elliot.

"I'm gonna," he rasped, his voice barely a whisper, his body trembling continuously, " _fucking die_ ,"

Olivia stared at him, wanting to avert her eyes but unable to - the smell of the blood too intense that she knew even if she closed her eyes, she would not be able to block it out.

Elliot tensed, casting a fleeting glance toward Olivia. His heart felt heavy as he watched her reaction - her inability to look away from the man quite clearly dying slowly in front of them from her bullet. He wanted to take her in his arms, tell her it was ok, that she had saved both of their lives by firing her gun, but he recognised the mask she wore. He knew that she was working hard to show them that she wasn't affected, when in reality she was shaking inside, with no choice but to watch the slow, painful death right in front of her.

"Take him outside - hand him over - he'll be in custody but he'll stand a chance. If he stays here he's gonna die," Elliot said.

Sam slumped to the ground, a weak cry escaping his lips, a sicking pallour creeping over his skin, as sweat mixed with his blood. Unable to move he remained slumped on the ground, his breathing slow and shallow, occasionally rasping. The room feel silent as they all stared at him.

"Give him a chance - i'll help you take him outside," Elliot said, "he's suffering, he put himself on the line to help break you out of here and you're just gonna let him die?" Elliot said.

Jed who had been leaning against the wall calmly watching the scene unfold, pushed himself off of the wall and silently walked forward, pausing in front of Sam.

"He ain't going out there, no way - _uncuff her,_ " Jed said.

Curtis hesitated and then moved to Olivia, unlocking the cuff and letting her wrist drop free. Olivia looked up at him, a wary and guarded expression masking her torrent of emotions.

" _You_ did this, so _you_ help him," Jed said with a hard stare.

Olivia moved over to kneel down next to Sam, taking hold of his wrist to check for a pulse. Looking up at Jed, she spoke, "his pulse is very weak, he's not even reacting to the pain anymore - he's going to die, there's nothing I can do, _he needs to be in the hospital_ ," she said.

Olivia shook her head at Jed's blank unfeeling expression and sighed as she averted her eyes from his hard gaze. Keeping her eyes focused on the man lying on the ground, she gripped the hem of her top, pulling it quickly up and over her head, before tearing it in half and doing her best to wrap it tightly across Sam's shoulder, although she knew the action was futile, he had lost too much blood.

Elliot felt instantly uncomfortable - Olivia had a tank top on underneath and so she was not exposed to them by any means, but he couldn't help the instant surge of protectiveness that he felt as he watched Jed's lecherous gaze fall on her.

"You wanna take the rest off darling, we won't stop you," Jed laughed.

Elliot wanted to wipe the grin off Jed's face, punch him hard and stop him from even looking in her direction. He felt an intense mix of anxiety and anger rising within him - Jed and Curtis were looking down at Olivia like vultures waiting for a kill, yet she was ignoring them valiantly, and doing her best to stop the man she had shot from dying, despite knowing that anything she did would be futile.

Olivia leant down close to him, watching as Sam's eyes fluttered, and his breath became barely audible. Elliot closed his eyes momentarily, knowing that Olivia would be feeling completely responsible for the man's death, and fearing the reaction from Jed and Curtis once the inevitable happened.

He didn't need to wait for long, in moments Olivia's bloodied hands left his shoulder as her eyes moved from his body up to Jed.

" _He's dead,_ " she whispered.

 **Thank you for reading - this is getting tense, but don't worry Liv and El can handle it, they have each other. Chapter four is under way. Also check out Hold which is in progress alongside this story, and Munch Knows, a parody by Stablerfan.**


	4. Chapter 4

**I am very sorry for the length of time this update has taken. I usually try to update with no more than two week gaps, so this was a big delay. Thank you for your reviews, PM's and DM's, I really appreciate the interest in this story. :-)**

 **I have two other not yet published stories which have not helped with the delay!**

 **Big thank you to my beta, Joanie :-) :-)**

Jed laughed.

Olivia sat back against the wall and shook her head in astonishment at Jed's lack of compassion. Feeling Elliot's hand on her arm, she immediately felt a surge of love for him. She turned her head, her eyes fleetingly moving toward his wrist which she could see was swelling badly, yet he ignored the pain to reach to her, to touch her, ground her, show her that he was there for her.

Olivia let her gaze drop to the floor, not wanting to look at the man lying so close to her, motionless, the smell of his blood inescapable; on her clothes, drying on her hands - seeming to seep into the air that she breathed. Elliot's touch served to keep her calm, the warmth of his hand on the bare skin of her arm sent a small shiver through her.

Olivia wanted to move back against the wall next to Elliot, lean into him and feel his arm around her, pulling her close to him as he held her. She wanted to hear the words that she knew he would speak - the reassurance he would give her without hesitation; that she had done the right thing, that their deaths were not her fault - that he would have done the same thing.

She could feel the tension in the room, and without lifting her eyes to meet Jed's, she knew that there had been a shift, that Jed had brought Sam in knowing he would only die. He knew they had time, and the fact that Jed was more interested in playing games right now than trying to get out, bothered her greatly. If they were starting to think that they were not going to get away, then they had little reason to keep two detectives alive.

Elliot watched Jed and Curtis warily - it concerned him that they had left Olivia un cuffed. The unbalance of the situation worried him immensely. He couldn't help her defend herself against two armed perps if he was securely restrained to a pipe; he knew he could not break free and trying to would only serve to injure his other wrist. That thought caused a wave of dread to creep over him - he didn't like the way Jed had his stare fixed hard on Olivia. He was consumed with an ominous sense that the situation could take a very bad turn at any moment.

Olivia was closing herself off, that much was obvious. He could tell that she was trying hard not to let the man's death affect her, not to make an outward display of her emotions; letting the perps see her weakened emotionally would only serve to give them leverage over her.

He imagined how different the night would have been had this not all gone down; sitting in a bar at a table, opposite Olivia, talking, seeing her laugh, just spending time with her again. It had been too long since he had just simply sat with her and talked, and laughed - and he missed her. He needed to change that - needed for this situation to be over with. After tonight, Elliot decided, he was not going to push her away anymore - to hell with his fear of her rejection, of the potential risk to their friendship, their partnership - he loved her. If they didn't get out alive, then all that fear of taking that risk and telling her how he felt - it wouldn't have protected either of them, it would simply have cost them the chance to be happy together.

Elliot's eyes stayed locked onto Olivia, quite sure in his heart, that if they were anywhere else right now, anywhere else at all, that he would cup her face in his hands and kiss her. To hell with risks, he was pretty sure most of his doubts were in his head anyway, maybe she would feel the same. Maybe Olivia would kiss him back with equal passion, return his embrace, tell him that she loved him too.

Some risks just had to be taken.

His thoughts were abruptly cut off and he tensed, as Curtis stepped closer standing in front of Olivia. His concerned gaze wavered from Olivia momentarily so that he could size up Jed. He knew that Jed was the one to be wary of, he called the shots and it was him and his now dead associate that this whole mess had been about. Curtis was dangerous, he had no doubt about that, but he looked to Jed for the next move, and that told Elliot that Jed was the one to worry about more.

Jed's cold gaze moved slowly from Elliot to Olivia, "You have caused me a lot of trouble. I don't care about him," he said, his eyes fleetingly falling to Sam's body, "but Graham, now he is a different story. You killed someone who mattered to me."

Jed moved closer, looking down at Olivia, "how does it feel to have their blood on your hands?"

Olivia held his stare, but did not give him a response - whatever she said, he would throw back at her and find a way to use against her, and she was well aware of that.

Jed smiled cruelly as he leant down taking hold of Olivia's upper arms and pulling her roughly to her feet, before tightening his grip on her shoulders and in one swift movement, pushing her hard against the wall, her back connecting painfully with the hard surface before she had time to react. Curtis watched with an eager interest as Jed turned around and put his hands on the table, shoving it to the other side of the room.

Olivia swept her hair back from her face, damp from the increased heat in the small room, as she blinked back a wave of dizziness and tried to catch her breath, steady herself, and think.

Elliot's eyes locked to hers for a brief moment, willing her to run while she had the chance. He shifted his gaze quickly to the door, the gun lying on the ground outside, directly in his line of sight, and he hoped in Olivia's too.

"Hurt her, and they won't waste time - they'll move in here and take you both out, believe me, you are making a very bad move," Elliot said, working to control the panic he felt.

His heart thudded heavily as Olivia turned suddenly, making a move for the door.

"You can still get out of this," Elliot said, his voice struggling to withhold his anger as Curtis, only a split second behind her, grabbed her shoulder, spinning her around.

"I can help you get out of here, but if you don't take your hands off her then you can wait till they storm the place, and trust me - they will shoot you in a second," Elliot said.

Curtis took a fistful of Olivia's hair and yanked her head back roughly, laughing as she winced in pain. His other hand went to her throat as he shoved her against the wall, holding her in place as her hands clawed at his, trying to break the tight grip on her neck. She quickly brought her knee up as hard as she could, connecting with his groin, instantly causing him to release his grip on her neck and double over in the pain.

She ran for the door, but froze at the unmistakable sound of a gun …. turning around, her eyes fell on to Elliot, a gun digging into his temple.

"Ok," Olivia whispered, her breath hitching as the sting of tears which she somehow stopped from spilling, clouded her eyes, "ok."

Elliot fixed his gaze firmly on hers, the steel of the gun pressing hard against his head. He knew in a second that she wouldn't do what he wanted her to. She would never turn around and run, never step away from him when his life was in danger. He wanted to shout - to get it through to her that these bastards were not going to let them walk out of there - if she ran she stood a chance, she could get away - they didn't both have to die.

He knew it was futile even as he mouthed the word.

'Run.'

She simply pursed her lips, fighting back the tears behind her eyes as she shook her head slightly, but firmly.

She wasn't leaving him, even if it meant she could save her own life.

Jesus, he loved her. With the gun digging into his head, certain that he was about to die, he almost gave in to the urge to say it - to smile at her and tell her he loved her. He had loved her from the day he met her, and it was stupid, beyond stupid that he had never told her. While he was separated, while he was pushing her away because he was too damn scared to be honest with her;

Elliot's heart dropped as she spoke the words he knew she would, without the slightest doubt.

"I'm not going anywhere."

She fixed her eyes firmly on Curtis as she moved slowly over towards Elliot, "don't you want to get out of here alive? Shooting a cop guarantees you won't."

"This is your last chance," Elliot said calmly. We can show you an exit that they won't have covered, you get to it and you're as good as out of here, I'll take you there right now."

Curtis looked to Jed, his arm wavering slightly as he held the gun steady against Elliot's head.

"We gotta try it," Curtis said, wincing at the pain still radiating throughout his groin.

"Don't trust them for a second," Jed spat, as he glared at Olivia.

"Well, looks to me like you're out of options. You gonna risk it, or just stay here and wait for them to storm the place?" Elliot said.

Elliot couldn't hide the relief he felt as Jed moved the gun away from his head, but tensed instantly as he approached Olivia and held it determinedly against the centre of her chest.

"If you're lying - if this is a trick, I promise you - you are both dead."

Fin and Munch were now at a marginal advantage having established communication with Cragen and the other members of the force on the outside of the building. They had also been updated on the conversation between Olivia and one of the gun men, as well as having taking possession of two glock's from their search of the lockers.

They were also feeling hugely relieved, knowing that neither Olivia nor Elliot had been injured when they had heard gun shots. The situation was starting to shift in their favor, and their confidence was building despite the unease they both still felt.

With their guns drawn, Fin and Munch pushed open the doors and walked into the room - they were both very prepared to walk into a hostage situation, but the first sight that met them was a body on the ground, blood pooling by his side.

"Graham Wright," Fin said.

Munch glanced at Fin before turning his attention back to the room - it was quiet, still, no sign of life.

"Well," he said, "that explains where he went, not so pissed about losing the coin toss and ending up without the gun now, looks like they needed it."

As they moved to check the other rooms, they remained silent, almost certain that the floor was now vacated, but needing to be certain.

"Another one in here - this one's more of a mess though," Fin said.

Munch joined him as they looked down at the body in the interrogation room.

"They didn't pass us on the way down so they could only have gone down from this floor," Munch said.

"That puts them on the two floors below us - where the hell are they going?" Fin asked.

"No idea, but if Liv and Elliot have them on the move, they might be gaining control of this," Munch said, "but they're not getting far unarmed, and heading into the basement."

"We have the firepower they need, so let's go back them up and put an end to this," Fin said.

After a call to Cragen, and a reassurance that there was not an immediate risk of the building being entered while Olivia and Elliot were trapped in the building's lower levels with the gun men, Munch and Fin made their way down the stairs, quickly clearing the next floor before drawing their guns and preparing to enter the basement, where they knew they would find the hostage takers as well as Olivia and Elliot.

Elliot glanced at Olivia, his eyes briefly connecting with hers as they walked through the significantly darker basement. Jed had a tight grip on her arm, and a gun held in his free hand, although it gave Elliot some degree of relief to know it was not pointing at her.

Curtis however, did not hesitate to press the barrel of his gun into Elliot's back as they walked through down the steps into the lower basement. The emergency lighting was at a bare minimum in such a lesser used part of the building, but that was to their advantage. This was their territory, the limited lighting could work in their favour.

"How much further?" Jed said.

"Just through here, and to the back. There's an emergency exit, takes us out into a tunnel under the street," Elliot said.

He met Olivia's eyes, and knew how they would play this. They had to tip the scales a little, throw them off just enough to fight and gain control. It was a risk, but the hope that Munch and Fin were not too far behind was something he held on to. They would have heard the gunshots and they would have armed up and looked for them. He trusted them both and knew they would be thinking along the same lines. He just needed their timing to be right.

Olivia put her hand to her head, suddenly standing still and groaning as she swayed slightly.

"I'm dizzy….I have to sit down, I think I have a concussion."

"You gave her a head injury, just slow down a bit," Elliot said.

"You're joking right - what do you want me to do about that? Get you a fucking glass of water and a comfortable chair? Keep. Moving," Jed spat as he yanked her arm and tried to pull her forwards.

Elliot's gaze connected with Olivia's in a brief flash, and she instantly swayed heavily against Jed, falling against his arm, leaving him with no choice but to loosen his grip as she slumped towards him and fell to the floor with a groan, before lying motionless on the ground.

 **Thank you for reading, I will try to make the next update much quicker.**

 **Please also check out Hold, which is in progress, and is a longer story. I recently published a one shot called Secrets.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Again, I apologise for the delay! If you are also reading Hold, I hope to start updating that one again soon too. This story has three more chapters to go.**

Outside of the station house, Cragen was growing more concerned by the minute. Fin had checked in on schedule, but it was clear to him that a confrontation was imminent, and if gunshots were heard, the team outside were no longer holding back. It wasn't his call, and he hated that, but he agreed with the decision of the hostage negotiator. They were moving in at the sound of gunfire, or once the two hours Olivia had negotiated for were up.

These were his people, and he wanted this over, and them all out without anyone getting hurt.

Munch and Fin reached the lower level of the basement, and being certain now that Olivia and Elliot had moved in this direction, Munch pushed open the door carefully, not wanting to cast too much light suddenly into the much darker room in the basement and reveal their presence too prematurely.

Fin looked looked through the partially open door, and seeing no one immediately nearby, he nodded to Munch, who pushed open the door. They both drew their guns as they walked through the door, focusing on the silence for any hint of company up ahead.

Moving slowly and quietly through the basement, they both exchanged a glance as they finally began to hear voices up ahead of them. Both taking a moment to mentally assess how many perpetrators they could be dealing with, they then continued forward until they reached a corner. The voices were becoming louder and they knew that they were moments away from a situation in which their colleagues and friends could potentially be held as hostages.

The timing would be crucial, a split second mistake could cost somebody their life. They had faced situations like these before, but every one was different, every risk just as real.

Munch and Fin paused, awaiting the moment to make their move.

Jed looked down at Olivia, his agitation building rapidly. "Get up!" he yelled.

He stared down at her unmoving form in disbelief as he tucked his gun into the back of his pants and crouched down, grabbing hold of her shoulders and roughly rolling her onto her back. Her head rolled slightly to the side, to Elliots relief, as he was all too aware of the wound to the back of her head.

Elliot remained standing, casting a cautious glance down at Olivia before moving his eyes back toward Jed, assessing him, studying his reaction, watching for any signs that his tough exterior was beginning to crack.

Elliot felt the pressure of the gun barrel that had been digging hard into his skin, suddenly ease, as Curtis stepped away slightly, lowering his gun as he stared at Jed. "That's a pretty big gash on her head - she's not gonna make it any further Jed - we gonna leave her?"

"She has a head injury, she could be badly hurt, let me take a look at her," Elliot said, as he turned his concerned gaze to his partner.

"No, I don't give a fuck after what that bitch did, she had it coming anyway. We keep going, leave her here," Jed spat.

"You think i'm gonna just go with you and leave my partner here alone, when she could be seriously injured?" Elliot said.

"You'll do," Jed said, as he stood up and turned to face Elliot, "what the fuck, I tell you to, now MOVE."

"NO," Elliot shouted in return.

"This is fucking insane, I could shoot you right now!" Jed said.

"Yeah, but you won't, i'm the only one who can get you out of here, and show you were the concealed exit is down here. So you are not gonna shoot me. I'll show you, once you help her, " Elliot said, watching Jed carefully, testing how far he could push him, "pick her up."

"You pick her up, then keep walking," Jed said.

Elliot sighed and held out his swollen wrist, "gonna be kind of a problem seeing as you broke my wrist."

Jed stared hard at Elliot, while Elliot remained calm and controlled, his confidence building by the minute as the control of the situation slipped slightly from Jed.

Jed cursed as he stooped down and grabbed Olivia's shoulders, giving a tug to pull her up just as Elliot caught movement in his peripheral vision. He held his breath, awaiting the moment where he could make his move.

It took only seconds until he knew it was time to end it.

"NYPD!" yelled Munch.

"Drop it, now!" yelled Fin.

As Jed snapped his head around sharply in surprise, and Curtis simply froze, Olivia quickly brought her knees up to her chest and kicked her legs out against Jed's stomach. The unexpected move knocked him backwards as Olivia quickly rolled onto her side and stood up, using her body weight to push him to the ground. Elliot wasted not time in wrenching the gun from Curtis's hands, who had raised his hands in surrender as soon as he realised he was outnumbered.

Olivia stumbled, fighting a wave of dizziness rom the sudden movement on her part, and leant back heavily against the wall, her hand tentatively touching the back of her head, as Fin took over cuffing Jed, snapping the cuffs tighter than necessary once he noticed Olivia's hand leave her head and drop to her side, fresh blood coating her skin.

Elliot threw Curtis against the wall, pulling his hands behind his back roughly, as Munch cuffed him.

"Let's get these bastards locked up," Fin said to Munch, before glancing at Olivia, "you OK Liv?"

"Yeah, I just need to get out of here," she said, looking up as she met Elliot's concerned gaze.

They stood silently as Munch and Fin took Jed and Curtis out of the basement, Olivia letting out a sigh of relief as the heavy fire door swung closed behind them, leaving them alone.

"You need to get that checked out Liv," Elliot said, his voice tinged with concern.

"It's fine, few stitches at the most El," she said, before gesturing to his wrist, "you think it's broken?"

Elliot's eyes softened as he stepped closer to her, "maybe a slight fracture, it's not too bad," he said, as he paused, before holding out his uninjured hand. "Let's get out of here."

Olivia froze momentarily at his gesture, and stared at his hand; it was such a simple gesture, yet such a big step. She took a breath as she hesitated, then exhaled steadily as she slipped her hand into his. He gave her a warm smile, as he squeezed her hand; Olivia glancing at him fleetingly, returning his smile, as she focused her gaze on the door in front of her.

"let's go then."

Elliot dropped his hand from hers as soon as they stepped outside and his vision was struck immediately by the artificial lamps now masking the fading daylight. Pausing for a moment, allowing his eyes to adjust from the stark contrast between the dim basement lighting and the bright lamps, he glanced briefly at Olivia, her pallor concerned him, but he knew there was no point telling her. He felt a surge of relief as his eyes fell on a waiting ambulance, and he turned in that direction, heading straight to where he could make sure she got medical attention.

They walked over toward the EMT's, just as Cragen headed in the same direction. The distance between them as they walked along, side by side was diminished, and although they were no longer holding hands, it almost felt to Olivia that they still were. The heat from his body, so close to hers, it felt as though they were touching, even when no part of either of them actually was. Olivia gave a small smile as that thought struck her momentarily, before the blinding headache that was rapidly forming soon took over, tearing her from her thoughts.

She felt so close to Elliot at the moment, so physically close, that she felt a pang of anxiety as Cragen approached them both. Certain that he would see it; when she felt the shift in their connection so clearly, so vividly, how could anyone else fail to notice it too?

"You two ok?" Cragen asked.

"Yeah, El's gonna need an xray on his wrist though," Olivia said, ignoring the flash of pain spreading across her head.

Cragen paused, frowning as he watched them both for a moment, Olivia suddenly wondering fleetingly, if their hands were, in fact, still intertwined.

"You don't look too good Liv, come on, let's get you checked out," Cragen said.

Olivia breathed a sigh of relief, realizing that Cragen was only assessing her physical condition, not taking in any obvious signs that she had crossed some kind of blurry line with her partner. Left without the energy or coordination to even laugh at herself for her paranoia, she made a mental note that she probably had at least three major symptoms of concussion, and sighed inwardly, resigning herself to a hospital visit.

The trip to the hospital was brief for Elliot, who wasted no time in getting back to Olivia's side. Olivia was less than happy, and he felt a slight concern at her decision to go against the doctors advice and not stay in overnight for observation, due to a mild concussion. In the end Olivia stood her ground and signed out, taking heed of the doctor's advice regarding her stitches and reasons to come back if her concussion worsened.

Olivia was hugely relieved to get out of the hospital, and as neither she nor Elliot were cleared to drive, Munch was enlisted to drop them both home. Olivia and Elliot sat in the back of the car, as Munch drove toward Olivia's apartment. Both had spoken only a few words since they had took each other's hand in the basement just two hours earlier. Having been whisked through the hospital, getting treated quickly, Cragen assured them that he only needed a brief run down of the timeline of events that night, but as IAB would be involved, they couldn't delay their full statements beyond the following day.

Elliot glanced at Munch through the mirror, and noticed that he was concentrating, apparently, on the road ahead.

"Liv, can I crash with you tonight? Then Munch can go straight home from here and no detour to Queens," Elliot said.

Munch instantly glanced at the mirror, meeting Elliot's eyes fleetingly as he raised an eyebrow in interest. Elliot chose not to react, and ignored him pointedly.

Olivia's heart thudded at Elliot's words - he had just invited himself to spend the night at her apartment. In reality, he had crashed at her apartment before, so Olivia was certain that it would not seem that anything was going on between them - and it hadn't, not really, but this time - she was all too aware of the shift between them. Something had changed, and in brief pause - a momentary silence, the memory of his mouth so close to her skin, his breath warm against her neck, flooded her mind in an instant.

"Is this your way of saying you were eavesdropping El?" she said.

"Don't know what you mean," Elliot replied with a grin.

"This conversation is not as riveting for me as it clearly is for you two, care to let me in on it?" Munch said.

"The doctor told Liv she shouldn't be on her own for the next 24 hours, just as a precaution, but she brushed it off. Come on Liv, just to put my mind at rest," Elliot said, as Munch returned his focus to the road ahead with a slight smile.

Olivia slumped back in her seat, wincing slightly as her head pressed slightly too hard against the headrest.

"You ok?"

"Yeah, just forgot not to lean back," She said.

"So," said Munch, as he pulled over outside Olivia's apartment, and put the car into park, "you disembarking here too Elliot?"

Elliot glanced at Olivia, who hesitated briefly, "sure, you'll only start calling me every couple hours and bugging me otherwise."

Munch laughed, "It's good to feel appreciated Elliot."

Elliot cast a brief smile at Olivia before leaving the car and thanking Munch for the ride. They turned and walked silently up the steps, Elliot hanging back slightly as Olivia punched the code into the door, swinging it open. Following her inside, he closed the door securely behind him and they made their way up in the elevator.

They were again silent, until they finally reached Olivia's door. Elliot watched her as she took out her key and brought her hand to the lock. She had a way of captivating him which he had made a noble effort to hide for years, but tonight was different. Tonight he had to tell her how he felt, and stop wasting time. Feeling very aware that either of them could of died that night, he knew that he had to take a step and move their relationship in the direction it needed to go. He had to tell her how he felt. He just hoped to God that he hadn't misread her signals and was therefore about to make a horrendous mistake.

Suddenly, the sound of Olivia's keys hitting the ground brought him out of his thoughts, and he glanced at her, noticing how she appeared almost nervous as she quickly bent down to pick them up. His heart suddenly rose at that realisation; if Olivia was feeling flustered, no doubt not helped by his extended gaze at her, then there was something there between them She did feel something for him too.

Resisting the urge to take her keys, he waited until she had coordinated herself enough to put the key in the lock and open the door. Taking a moment to debate whether she should really be out of the hospital so soon, he followed her into her apartment, closing and locking the door, as she slumped down on to her couch.

Elliot moved to stand in front of her, watching her with a slight smile. Eventually, feeling his eyes on her, she looked up at him quizzically.

"Come on Liv, you need to go to bed, you're exhausted," he said, as he leaned down, putting his arms around her and lifting her up to her feet slowly.

"Ok," she said, as she leant against him, her head dropping softly onto his shoulder.

Elliot inhaled, turned his head before placing a soft kiss against her head. He steered her to her bedroom, his arm around her shoulders, as her head stayed resting against his shoulder. Reaching her bed, he sat her down as he pulled her covers back.

She groaned in relief and laid down, and gave a smile as Elliot pulled her blanket up to her shoulders, before placing his hand lightly on her head, stroking her hair briefly before standing up.

"El," she whispered, "my couch is hardy comfortable….my beds more than big enough, just lay down and we can both sleep comfortably."

As the words left her lips she felt her heart quicken in anticipation of his reaction. It was a simple offer, nothing that would really cross a line, but she knew that the simple act of sleeping on the same bed, would do just that; it would put them across their blurry line that much further.

"You sure?" Elliot asked.

"I'm too tired to stay awake El, but when I wake up, if I find you've slept on my couch with a fractured wrist, when I have a perfectly good bed here, I'll be pissed. Get in El," she murmured, as she battled to stay awake, "let's sleep."

Elliot watched her for a moment longer, noticing the way her breathing very quickly became deeper and more even, and knew that she had fallen asleep. He quickly unbuckled his belt, and slipped off his pants, but realising that she had fallen asleep in her clothes, decided to leave his t shirt on.

Slipping into bed alongside his partner, he turned on his side, pulling the pillow down slightly, to rest his wrist more comfortably as he watched her.

Her back was turned, and from that angle he could see the stitches at the back of her head. A flash of anger swept through him at the thought that she had got hurt at all, but he soon calmed, shifting slightly, as he reached towards her, his uninjured hand sliding across her crisp white sheet, stopping only inches from her.

He hesitated only momentarily, before shifting awkwardly, avoiding pressure on his wrist, until he was lying much closer to her, and took a breath before slipping his arm around her waist, his hand instinctively finding hers.

Olivia stirred slightly in her sleep and tightened her hand briefly around Elliot's before relaxing, easing into his hold, as her back connected with his chest.

"Night El," she said, her voice barely audible as she drifted back to sleep.

 **Thank you for reading, and again apologies for my extended updating times at the moment. So, with three more chapters to go, it doesn't quite end here. I'm all for happy endings for these two, but there is a little further to go yet ;-) :-)**


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